An Elma shutout over Montesano put the Eagles boys soccer team alone atop the 1A Evergreen League standings after Wednesday’s local prep matchups.
BOYS SOCCER
Elma 3, Montesano 0
Elma took the early lead in the 1A Evergreen League with a convincing shutout victory over Montesano at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.
The Eagles (3-0 overall, 1A Evergreen) scored in the first five minutes of the game and used smothering ball pressure to disrupt and limit Montesano’s offensive opportunities.
Elma took an early lead when freshman midfielder Cason Seaberg scored off a deflected cross by Gavin Blakett in front of the Monte goal in the third minute of the game.
The game remained 1-0 for much of the first half, with Elma controlling possession and creating the majority of offensive chances.
The Eagles doubled their lead in the 30th minute after a corner kick created a scrum in front of the Bulldog net. The ball eventually found its way to the foot of Elma forward Manny Hernandez, who had his original shot blocked before stepping through Monte defenders and scoring on a deflected shot that gave the Eagles the all-important two-goal lead.
Montesano (1-3, 1-2) had its best chance to score in the first half on a steal from midfielder Mateo Sanchez, who fired a hard shot from approximately 25 yards out that sailed over the crossbar with just under 13 minutes to go in the half.
With Elma leading 2-0 at halftime, the Eagles continued to put the pressure on the Montesano defense over the final 40 minutes of the game.
The Eagles took a 3-0 lead when Seaberg scored his second goal of the game when he converted a corner kick from senior midfielder Abel Alatorre in the 61st minute.
Elma out shot Monte 16-3 with a 12-3 shots-on-goal advantage as the Eagles defensive rotation of René Duran — who returned from a foot injury suffered before the first game — Jace Poston, Alexis Ramirez, Ivan Garcia, Alatorre and Luna limited Montesano’s offense.
Montesano goal keeper Dalton Harris made nine saves in the game, many of those in acrobatic fashion as Elma peppered him with shots in the second half.
Elma senior midfielder Rodrigo Luna liked the way his team played on Wednesday, though he still sees much room for improvement.
“(This game) meant a lot considering it was a league game and we’re only three games in. … We came in fired up and I think we played pretty good but I think there are just a few things we can touch up and come back the second time around and have a better performance,” Luna said. “But overall, I’m happy with the score.”
RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Elma senior Abel Alatorre, left, congratulates freshman Cason Seaberg after Seaberg scored a goal in the first half of a game against Montesano on Wednesday in Montesano.
Elma head coach Carson Seaberg concurred with Luna’s statement, saying that there were scoring chances left on the field while complimenting Monte’s defense.
“When you come over to your cross-town rivals, you are always happy when you come away with a win,” he said. “(Monte’s) defensive structure was much tighter than some of the other teams we’ve had an opportunity to play up to this point. That’s a good thing for us because we need to have those opportunities to build off of.”
The win puts Elma a half game up on Forks in the race for a league title with much soccer left to be played.
By the looks of it, Elma should be in the mix for a league championship by the end of the season.
“As a player and a teammate, I know, and my teammates know what our potential is and we just need to keep bringing each other up and rising to the challenge of getting better every single day,” Luna said. “I think the ceiling is endless and we can just keep going up and have a great season.”
Other scores
Tenino 9, Raymond-South Bend 0
BASEBALL
Centralia 14, Aberdeen 3
A depleted Aberdeen baseball team dropped to 0-2 on the season with a five-inning loss to the host Centralia Tigers.
After a positive COVID test for one of its players caused four upperclassman to be quarantined for 14 days due to contact tracing beginning earlier this week, Bobcat head coach Dave Hinchen was forced to ask several underclassmen to step up into key positions.
“I had to bring up more young kids and they played well,” Hinchen said, noting that all four quarantined players normally pitched and played significant innings. “I had three freshman starting and they had three of our five hits. … We have one senior and one junior right now and the rest are freshman and sophomores. The kids are learning and it’s trial by fire. They’re holding their own and I saw a lot of positives tonight.”
One of those positives was freshman Hunter Eisele, who went 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI for the Bobcats.
“He played really well,” Hinchen said of Eisele. “That double was hit hard to the wall.”
Centralia did most of its damage in the first and third innings, scoring four runs in the opening frame followed by an eight spot in the third.
“Big innings killed us,” Hinchen said. “It hasn’t been where they are lambasting the ball. It’s a walk, a bloop and an error and it kind of compounds. … We need to get better on our execution of the little things.”
Aberdeen’s three runs came in the top of the fourth inning. After loading the bases with no outs, Aberdeen’s Kale Goings scored on a passed ball, followed by a run from Baylor Ainsworth, who scored on an RBI ground out off the bat of Trey Anderson. Eisele then doubled to drive home Kenny Dawson with the Bobcats’ third run.
Eli Brown (1-2), Ainsworth (1-1, R) and Dawson (1-1, R) also collected base hits for the Bobcats.
As a team, Aberdeen (0-2) drew six walks in the game.
With COVID quarantine limiting his roster for at least the next two weeks, Hinchen and his staff are just trying to weather the storm and use it as an opportunity to get underclassmen some quality playing time.
“We’re just trying to navigate through this, get through it and limit the damage,” he said. “Young kids are going to get better. They’re going to get some playing time and get better and hopefully build off of that. Hopefully, by the end of the season we’ll be firing on all cylinders and winning some games.”
GIRLS TENNIS
Centralia 5, Aberdeen 1
Aberdeen opened its season with a loss in Centralia.
Freshman Kallie Knutson provided Aberdeen with its lone victory of the contest, winning her singles match against the Tigers’ Ruth Gonzalez, 6-1 and 6-0.
“She is feisty on the court and gets to everything,” Aberdeen head coach Ashley Kohlmeier said of Knutson.
According to Kohlmeier, 11 of the 18 Bobcats are new to the sport, and some first-match jitters were felt during Wednesday’s matches.
“The second sets were all more competitive, which shows that this young team has a lot of promise,” she said. “Our league is historically tough, as all the teams on the I-5 corridor have girls who play year-round tennis. I am happy we were able to compete the way we did and look forward to a great season.”
Singles — Liza Hopkins (Centralia) defeated Victoria Judkins (Aberdeen) 6-0, 6-0; Olivia Wiley (C) def. Kylie Weiberg (A) 6-0, 6-3. Kallie Knutson (A) def. Ruth Gonzalez (C) 6-1, 6-0.
Doubles — Maddie Corwin/Maya O’Dell (C) def. Kiley Ehly/Madelynn Machowek (A) 6-1, 6-4; Olivia Norris/Nora Sass (C) def. Lillian Allen/Rylie Waltee (A) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4; Sophia Wiley/Emily Wilkerson (C) def. Annie Troeh/Zoe Troeh (A) 6-2, 6-4.
GIRLS GOLF
Elma 229, Hoquiam 231
Led by the sister duo of Aubrey and Ella Moore, the Elma Eagles edged the Hoquiam Grizzlies, 229-231, in the season-opener for both teams Tuesday at Oaksridge Golf Course.
The Moore sisters each carded a score of 55 for their nine-hole rounds to lead Elma. The Eagles team score also included a sub-60 round of 58 from Klover Johnson.
Hoquiam was led by Minh Thi Butler, who earned medalist honors with a score of 54.
The Grizzlies also benefited from low-score rounds by Jillian Cobb (55) and Ainsley Estes (58).
Elma (229) — Ella Moore 55, Aubrey Moore 55, Klover Johnson 58, Torrey Thompson 61
Hoquiam (231) — Minh Thi Butler 54, Jillian Cobb 55, Ainsley Estes 58, Natalia Pieraccini 64
Aberdeen 40, Rochester 8
Freshman Britt Rajcich scored 25 of Aberdeen’s 40 points as the Bobcats earned a 40-8 season-opening victory over Rochester on Wednesday at Riverside Golf Course in Chehalis.
Using the Stableford scoring system that awards points based on shots made (par equals four points, bogie equals three points, etc.), Rajcich brushed away any early-round nerves by parring the first hole. Her solid play continued throughout the round as she earned medalist honors in her first varsity match.
In addition to Rajcich’s play, Aberdeen head coach Dan Sundstrom also noted Saylor Heikkila’s contribution of 10 points to the Bobcats’ score. Heikkila’s round included three bogies, or what Sundstrom humorously dubbed “Bobcat pars.”
The match featured entirely new varsity squads for both teams after the cancellation of last season.
“It was a perfect first match for us,” Sundstrom said. “Both teams didn’t have a player with high school match experience. Last year’s season was canceled, so our returning sophomores and freshmen didn’t get to play in a match (in 2020).”
Aberdeen will take on Tumwater on Tuesday, April 13, at Grays Harbor County Club.
Aberdeen (40) — Britt Rajcich 25, Saylor Heikkila 10, Kasie Caskey 2, Anna Matisons 2, Kate Ancich 1, Kaitlyn McCracken 0
Rochester (8) — Amerika Jones 4, Bailey McLellon 2, Evelyne Houghton 1, Izzy Maisias 1, Kate Davis 0, Aubrey Williams 0
